Garnet's Life Adventures

2 more points of Obama in my mind

I know this is not a really good reason to like Obama more, but it made me giggle today when I read Why Obama may not like Britain, so I wanted to share my thoughts with you - feel free to comment, discuss, agree or disagree with me - I've always said, opinions are like ***holes, every one's got one and they all can stink!

It starts off by saying, "It recently emerged that Obama’s Kenyan grandfather, Hussein Onyango Obama, was imprisoned and tortured by colonial British authorities for two years during the 1950s, when the Mau Mau insurgency was rebelling against British rule."

The funny part to me is when the article says, "In his [Obama's] memoir, the British come across as “ill-dressed, pasty-faced, and racially arrogant; cramped, spotty, and joyless.” " anyone who has lived over here for a period of time probably felt the same way on at least one of these comments, or is that just me???

I was glad to see the article wasn't all just about pointing out reasons why Obama could dislike Britain, as it also mentioned, "With the global economy in free-fall and his country mired in two wars, Obama surely will not be “fixated on extracting revenge from the U.K.” Britain’s “colonial sins” are unlikely to “pose a risk to our relationship with the soon-to-be most powerful person on Earth.”"

I also thought it was great when they ended the article with, "But still, instead of wallowing in our guilt, let’s learn from it. The Obama family’s experience demonstrates the horrors of imperialism. . . . “anti-imperialism is little more than an excuse for tyrants to visit misery and terror on their own populations.” If the West has learned anything from the experience of Hussein Onyango Obama and others like him, it will denounce all such abuse—no matter whom the perpetrator is."

Your thoughts . . . if any??

Labels: news, obama, politics, thought provoking, thoughts

posted by Sara @ 4:58 pm 0 comments

My thoughts on Obama Winning

Labels: London, politics, thought provoking, thoughts

posted by Sara @ 2:35 pm 7 comments

The purpose of life is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experience.

Who said that?

They also said, "I could not at any age be content to take my place in a corner by the fireside and simply look on"

And another great one is, "You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, 'I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.' You must do the thing you think you cannot do"

Well if you haven't guessed it already these are all quotes from Eleanor Roosevelt, a woman I have always really admired, ever since my 8th grade trip to Washington DC. I cannot recall what it was way back then that made me so interested in her. I worry it might have just been some thing silly, like I saw a cool statue or photo of her. I like to think it was that I remember some thing famous she said & that's why I admired her, but alas I was only in 8th grade and the reality is that more than likely I saw a statue of her & liked it so that made an impression on me.

On a different note, I had sorta had a crap day today - I went a meeting up in Oxford & presented my data, which not to toot my own horn, but I think it's interesting & good. But at the end when people were allowed to ask questions, a woman (Miss Netherlands as I'll call her) said, "I don't believe your data" . . . now I can't go into the details of it all here, but really who needs to say something like that??? A question of "why didn't you do x, y, or z?" I can answer, but what do you expect me to say to that comment? Miss Netherlands then sorta tried to explain why she doesn't "believe" my data, which really proved more that she doesn't like my protocol, more so that not thinking mine was good - her protocol is just different than mine - again the "why didn't you do it this way" in my mind would have been the way to go. When she was done speaking I said, "thanks that's an interesting point to think about for the future. Any more questions?" . . . long pause . . . nothing, so I walked to the back of the room & slumped down in my chair, feeling rather crappy!!

At the coffee break, my lab members all came over to say I'd done a good job & a woman who we'd all met in Thailand who works in Germany (Katrin B) said, "what did you think of that question?" so I explained myself a bit & Katrin B said, "I think your right, it's more relevant to in vivo that way" which made me feel a lot better, but as you can tell since this all went down at approximately 2.30pm I'm still bothered by the comment.

So I think my other "issue" with what happen today was that my boss wasn't there to back me up and I didn't feel I could really "argue" my point all alone. Ah well - live & learn . . .

It's now nearly 11.30pm & I've got a picnic to prepare for tomorrow (if the weather holds up) so I'm going to go to sleep now and try to forget about Miss Netherlands's comment!

Labels: eleanor roosevelt, presentation, quotes, science, thoughts

posted by Sara @ 11:03 pm 3 comments

"Do you miss the USofA?"

Missing the states is a hard one as life here for me is very different. I've never lived in a BIG city & maybe it would be much the same if I were living in NYC.
I LOVE London!!
Miss having a car to get out of the city, but so blood expensive to own one & hire a parking spot & that's before you even put any petrol in the damn thing (£1.20/L = $7/gallon)
I enjoy being able to go to the theatre, opera (well not really as I'm not keen on it, but like the ability that if I wanted to I could), cinema, etc at the drop of a hat after work.
I love their love of football (soccer) and rugby - I've been to 3 lives matches & it's loads of fun!!
I miss my family & friends back home.
I miss the countryside.
I love the international foods here.
I love the mix of people I work with & interact with (Spanish, German, English, Welsh, Irish, Polish, Russians, French, Italians, Scandinavians, Nigerian, Ozzie's & NZers, South Africans, Turkish, and I'm sure I've forgotten a few nationalities).
I LOVE being paid in £s!!!
I love being able to travel to different countries for a long weekend (the way we would change states).
I miss little things like food shopping in the states (as it's slightly different here - again not a big deal just not the same).

Labels: america, differences in the UK, england, thoughts

posted by Sara @ 12:43 pm 0 comments

Life's Reset Button

Ever have one of those days where you just wish you could rewind a few seconds or minutes & start a certain part over so you could avoid some bigger event later on which you hadn't anticipated? I have!! I try to live my life so that I don't regret anything and I can honestly say that 97% of the time I'm spot on, but then that other 3% sorta niggles me at times.

Earlier today after work was done, all my work mates went out for drink & I went along - not planning on staying long as I'm not supper keen on this whole get drunk & waste most of the next day hung over, but trying not to be seen as the anti-social one of the group I went along. One glass of house wine which tastes like crap will allow me to SLOWLY sip it whilst everyone else drinks at their own speed.

Phone call number one, Rob. "What you doing? What you up to at the weekend? New flat is great, new bed arrived, all's well - working Saturday, free Sunday, let's do Sunday roast" Cool deal - all set.

Phone call number two, Jim. "where are you? why aren't you at the Tup? come up and meet me. becks is on her way so we're not going anywheres else. see you in an hour"

Forty-five minutes later I start my good-byes with the work lot & grab the bus up to Camden. Pop into the Tup for a drink. Rediscover why I don't frequent pubs at 8pm on a Friday as everyone is DRUNK. Have a chat & a bit of a laugh with Jim, Becks, and the pub staff whom I all know very well. Then that point hits where you suddenly realise you wish you had a rewind button (or a beam me up Scottie button) Long of the short is Jim got arsey with Ray (manager) all because I was taking the piss outta Jim for gettin lippy with me about Buffalo Sabres being better than the Rangers, but Jim half in his cups didn't see me as the "bad guy" but rather Ray.

Luckily (before a fist fight broke out) or probably rather unluckily at this point Becks decides it's time for Jim to go home. I say unluckily because at this point she looks for her bag . . . GONE. Calm down, ask Ray if the bar staff stashed it behind the bar . . . NO LUCK. Ray returns with the somber message of, "it's on CCTV, some guy nicked it & walked off." Out come the elephant tears, now I'm not trying to be a bitch, but HELLO, if you leave your bag on the bar & go to the loo without telling anyone & without it, what do you expect?!?!? I know you're engaged to a PC, but we live in flippin London, it's a city for goodness sakes.

Okay, so that's not what I said at all! You should know me better than that by now. Instead we trundled up to Ray's office to see the CCTV, where we confirmed he'd stolen her bag from the bar at 21.35 and then walked straight out the pub at 21.37. Ray called her bank & helped her cancel her card (again she's in hysterics now and Jim is still a bit not so friendly with Ray.) Ray is a saint, it sucks to be the manager of the pub when shite like this happens, but he handled it like a trooper, especially as 30 seconds before this all started Jim was ready to pound his face in.

To make a ridiculous long story shorter - from the Tup we headed straight to KT police station to report it all with the CCTV which Ray so kindly burned on DVD for us. Reported the situation to the PC on duty. Went to the section house (aka police housing) next door met up with our old mate Paul (nickname of Eyeball) where he made us all cups of tea & we had a chat till Becks was calmer (as in able to stand without her legs giving out) and then we all headed home.

So where would I have rewound this evening? Maybe prior to the "fight" and bag snatching . . . maybe even rewind to the pub with my work mates & just gone straight home from there (which I normally do) but then again I guess that's just not me. I always end up being the one who picks up all the pieces . . . Jim had no way to calm Becks down - I talked her down explaining that now that the bankcard was cancelled all he'd gotten was an old brolly, her dirty jumper, plasters(band aids), diary (day planner) and a wallet full of nothing!

I KNOW! I KNOW, I must have been there at that moment for a reason (calming the hysterical down) but at this point in time I'm exhausted & wishing I'd not been there - is that bad of me? I know now that it's nearly 2am that I'm going to be overtired tomorrow & pissed off that I was up so late & to be honest I have nobody to blame but myself. I could have left after I knew the bag was nicked. I could have left after they were at the nick (police station). I could have left when the fight was breaking out. I could have walked way when there was drama looking for the bag. I could have left when she was hysterical about cancelling her card or even when they got to the police station. I could have buggered off before going to the section house for a cuppa (cup of tea) with Eyeball. But no, miss nice person that I am thought it best to stay till she was calm, worrying if she didn't the boy by her side would just get frustrated with her & leave her.

Well I'm ruddy exhausted now, so going to hit the rest button for the night & get some kip!

Labels: London, mates, night out, police, pub, thoughts

posted by Sara @ 1:54 am 6 comments

When I grow up I wanna be . . .

a question I've been asking myself a lot recently! Can I see myself doing research 30 years from now . . . not so much. Why you ask? Well to be honest I'm not totally sure, but to the best of my ability I think that I don't find it to be as rewarding as I would like it to be. I've thought about this quite a bit & asked advice from lots of my mates here in the UK and abroad. Here is the email I sent out asking for their thoughts on my thoughts:
Seem to have been bitten rather hard by a travel bug, here is the update: In May I'm off to Rome for 1st bank holiday & then to St Petersburg for 5 days at end of month, 2nd bank holiday probably going to the lake district (northern England) June 11-15th I'm in Berlin for a conference, June 19th headed home till July 12th. August 16th in Jim & Beck's wedding in Nottingham. September Dad & I are in Edinburgh, Scotland for a few days. October possibly gong to Rwanda. After that I'll be totally skint, but hopefully have cool photos & fun stories to tell from it - but don't expect any Christmas presents - LOL.
Aside from that I've got another meeting with the people who fund me on May 15th & I HAVE to prove I'm worth funding cause at the moment they want to cancel my grant in December. This being said I'm thinking more & more about not staying past December. Maybe it's the crap weather we've been having or maybe it's me finally getting "home sick" if you can call it that after nearly 3 years, but I've been thinking more & more about moving state side sooner rather than later. I'm still up in the air about what to do with "the rest of my life". I'm still in search of a possibly a new job where I feel like I'm making more of a difference. I know the possibility of me finding a cure or vaccine against the disease I work on is NOT going to happen anytime soon. Not sure that time frame is working for me - if you get my drift. It's weird, it's not that I'm not having fun here, it's just that I sorta feel like I'd like to see my family & friends more often than once a year when we're all rushed at Christmas & I have to rush to see them all in just 1 week & share them with other friends & relatives who are in the same situation (if that makes any sense). PLEASE, PLEASE don't mention this to anyone I work with or put any sort of message which could be seen by them (ie facebook), I don't want to jeopardize anything here, in case I decide to stay past December. Any thoughts???
I received lots of replies, primarily saying "I will support you in whatever you feel you want to do" which was not really the answer I was looking for, but appreciate that you're being supportive in my time of need. But I did get one really really good reply, which I'll share with you now:
If it helps at all none of any of your contemporaries back here seem to know what they want to do either; K and M want desperately to move back up north but M hasn't received any job offers yet and is making great money working here. K.......well you know. S can't decide if he should stay with NYPD or move back to CT to work in Manchester or East Hartford, etc. TM likes working and living in Boston but now his wife wants to move back to Oregon and T wants to live in VT. I can't decide if I want to take a job with our plain clothes investigative unit, move up north, join our SWAT unit, stay where I am, etc. JC doesn't know what he wants to do other than he is enjoying teaching. WR wanted to build a house in Keene Valley, but then he decided he would go live in Utah for six months and we haven't seen him since.
If it helps the decision making process at all TW is about to get a job with NYPD so I'd say living in the city is a bad idea on the grounds alone that they are going to give that little goofball a gun.
So that's where it seems we all are. Never happy or content with ourselves and I don't think we would have it any other way. I will say this though I love my job and look forward to going to work everyday and I don't see that changing anytime soon so you see it's not really work at all. Beyond any advice I could give you about being home sick and away from friends and family I would offer that you should make sure you are still happy with your career. If not than you definitely need a change. As far as friends and family go I'm sure we'll always be "around".
Enjoy the travel and keep me posted on what's new.
-pjc
This mate of mine always has an excellent perspective to give. He was the one who when I wasn't sure what to think after my parents got divorced & I was feeling really lost said to me, "Sara, they did what they thought was best for you & Patty at the time. They never intended on hurting you - any lies that were told were said with the best intention . . . and look at you both now - turned out pretty well in my opinion." He was right then and once again he's hit the nail on the head. I'm not so much missing my friends & family as they're always "around". I'm not lacking in friends in the UK - I'm just lacking in my job. So back to the drawing board I go . . . where it will lead I don't know. What I have figured out is I want a job where I feel like I'm making more of an impact. No I don't want to save the world or get a Nobel prize (I mean those would be nice, but a bit out of reach of reality). I just think a job where I feel there is more reward is what I'm leaning towards. Teachers can see their students learning. Cops arrest "bad guys" and help little old ladies. Plumbers fix leaking pipes for people. I LOVED working at boy scout camp - I helped scouts to learn leather work, woodworking, and how to ride a horse. Since then I haven't felt like someone has benefited from the research I've done - I know small steps have been made, but given the choice I'd prefer a larger step be made & seen my me. So I'm going to keep mulling this over in my head & see what I come up with. Maybe even try to speak with a life coach or do some sort of aptitude testing - who know . . .

Any comments/questions/advice is more than welcome.

Labels: advice, feelings, friends, future, jobs, thoughts, unknown

posted by Sara @ 4:56 pm 5 comments

PhD or not to PhD that is some peoples question

A good mate of mine, who I shall call Miss A & I have been discussing getting a PhD. She's waaaaaay further ahead of this planning process than I am, as she actually has applied & gone for an interview & toured the campus. She emailed me today to say she doesn't think she wants to do it anymore & did I think this was weird. Here is my reply, which some of you might find interesting since I'm sure you've wondered, when or why has she not gotten her PhD yet. If you have more questions feel free to ask away.

Miss A,
I never even made it as far as an interview & visiting a campus, I just have this gut feeling like I'm not meant to be a PhD student. I don't think it has anything to do with me not being smart enough, just the stuff they (PhDs) do seems less like what I actually enjoy about the lab. I'm not into the writing of papers & grants. I enjoy the lab section of the job - I like playing around with media & bugs & at times even enjoy the LFU (email me if you haven't figured out what that is yet) work, that is when they're BALB, but even the B6 I'm getting use to - did I tell you I can now ip inject a B6 . . . I'd never done that before in my Trudeau life (as I like to call it).
I see Greg, Ulrich, John, Helena & Quentin pulling their hair out over money & grants. All worried they're research will be scooped by another lab or PI (principle investigator). Maybe I'm just not cut-throat enough for that position. I wish I knew exactly what it was, though I guess in a way it doesn't really matter, I just know I don't want what they have. That's not to say I won't want it in the future, just for now, I can't or maybe I don't want to handle it. I don't think it's a bad thing by any means, as I love my job & the work I'm doing now. If/when the day comes when I suddenly have the urge to go for the PhD, then hopefully I'll be in a position where I have the time & can pursue it.
Anne-Marie (a receptionist) had a bit of a go per say with me over this issue just last week when I bumped into her whilst on my way back from getting my new glasses (see photo in older post). She said, so when you gonna be done with your PhD? To which I explained I wasn't a PhD student, just here working for now. She said, oh come on, what a waste of time, you know you want one. I thought, the cheek of her to tell me it's a waste of time, how the heck does she know what I want & if what I'm doing is a waste of time?!?!?!?!
There are lots of things I still want to do in my life, like more travelling & in my mind signing up for 4-6 years for a PhD doesn't really sound like fun when I could spend that money & time doing other things. Some might call it laziness, but as Greg always says PhDs come & go, but the technical & administrative staff are the ones who run this place! So my point is that your decision not to get/want to get a PhD right now is nothing to be ashamed/embarrassed/worried about at all!

Anyone have thoughts/ideas/comments about Miss A & me not wanting a PhD?

On a completely different topic, today I'm thankful to the porters who scrubbed, cleaned, polished, and waxed our lab floor - it looks beautiful!!!

Okay off to have movie/curry night with Shani & Ellie now.

Labels: march challenge, PhD, thoughts

posted by Sara @ 6:19 pm 9 comments

What would PS do?

So some of you might have visited Nate's blog once or twice before, and maybe some of you are even following the story on a daily basis (like I am). Yes, I know there are thousands, if not millions, of blogs out there on the web to read, how do you chose which ones to follow & which not to you ask??!?!

For me that's easy, I follow only a few blogs on a regular (meaning daily) basis. I think all the blogs I visit are listed in my side bar, but not all of those are daily reads. The reason I mentioned Nate's blog earlier & why the title reads, "what would PS do?" is because after following what he tells of his story and I'm sure there is a lot more which he doesn't/cannot write about, I find myself throughout the day wondering what his wife is doing. Her name is Patricia Suzanne, aka PattySue or as you may see her called in the blog Tricia. I don't think for long, just a few seconds whilst pushing myself onto the tube in the morning, or when worrying about an issue at work, or even most recently tonight, when pushing myself to go to the gym.

Let me try to set the scene, though this maybe one of those hard to explain kinda things. It was a typical Monday at work, on the whole nothing to difficult, I put placed in charge of sorting out the ID card & 4 digit pin codes with our safety officer, IC's safety officer, IC's BSF 2 staff members (who I personally think are about as useful as tits on a bull to put it nicely), and the counter-terrorist police unit . . . at first I was very proud to be put in such a position - little me in charge of sorting this out with all this "big wigs", until I realised this was a much harder task than I thought it was going to be - my quick & easy solution was not so easy, which means it's not a quick fix either . . . back to the drawing board with that one tomorrow. But back to my point, at the end of the day, I was sorta feeling beaten by the first of what I can now see as being many meetings with all these people (and anyone who's ever had a meeting with more than 2 people understands how hard it is to try to get multiple people's schedules to match, try doing it with 3 from one institute, 3 from another, and 2-3 from a police branch in central London - you guessed it, NOT fun!) Sorry I got off track again. As I was saying, I was feeling a bit down, came home, had dinner, was checking my emails & debating if I should go to the gym or not. Thinking I could go tomorrow before work, which I know is never really a good plan since I have a rather large dislike for getting up in the morning, so waking up extra early to go to the gym is a ruddy bad idea!! I finally got up, put on my gym kit & walked over. About half way through the work out, I was feeling exhausted, I was wondering why I'd decided to put myself through this & suddenly whilst on the leg curl machine (I think my most hated machine at the mo) just as I was about to give up at rep 7 of my 2nd set (I'm suppose to do 3 sets of 15) suddenly I thought, "what would Tricia do?"
At first the other half of my brain said, "nothing she can't go to the gym"
To which the other half of me said, "but if she could go to the gym, she wouldn't give up, do the next 8 for her, since she can't"
So I pushed the next 8 out & went back to lunges & swats, before ending back on the leg curl machine for my last set. I cannot lie, I thought about skipping out, stretching and just grabbing my jacket so I could leave - I mean who would notice, who would care?!?!? But instead, thanks to Tricia & her strength to fight something way harder than 15 leg curls, I got on the machine & did all 15!!
Probably some of you are thinking so what - you finished your workout, big deal and maybe some of you are so bloody bored you stopped reading a few paragraphs ago. What I'm hoping you got out of my rather long winded stream of consciousness writing is that we take a lot for granted on a daily basis - it's not until you can't do something that you realise how lucky you are. I would bet that Tricia would give anything to have been on that machine doing leg curls (well maybe not them since I know how much they suck, but I'm sure she'd have loved to be at the gym tonight with me!)
Just take a second to reflect on the things you did today, what have you taken for granted? Imagine if you were in a hospital & couldn't have done those things - aren't you the least bit thankful for what you were able to do today?
So I'm going to try to make a pact with myself I'm going to call it my March Challenge (since it's just round the corner really) every day I'm going to try to be more thankful & try to take fewer things for granted. When I get pissed off about something at work - I'm going to try to be thankful I have a job. When I get frustrated at the airport b/c the plane is delayed - I'm going to think of those who can't get on a plane. I hope you can all join me in trying to be a bit more conscious of all the things around us that we have to be thankful for.

THANK YOU PATTY SUE!!!!!!!!!

I hope this post makes sense, since it's now 10.15pm, I'm not going to re-read it.

Labels: march challenge, nate's blog, remembering, thoughts

posted by Sara @ 9:38 pm 6 comments

Fallen from Grace

Once again Ms Brain Cheese has yet another great post - so along those lines I pose to my readers (all 3 of you - lol) "What has life taught you?" in under 50 words please!!

Linda's question came at an interesting time in my day. I got up around 9am, had breakfast, started reading a new book, Tran-sister Radio by Chris Bohjalian (author of Midwives, which I enjoyed while at Norwich & living in VT) then showered & got ready to go to the movies. I'd made plans to meet up with Jaiden at 12.45 outside the Angel tube station, but she'd cancelled last minute, so I figured heck I'll just go alone since I wanted to go to Angel to get some Teva sandals from Blacks anyways. I got on the bust at 11.35, but this bus was only going to Muswell Hill Broadway (about 3 minutes up the road) but I got on it & figured I'd just grab the next 43 bus & be on my way . . . after waiting 20 minutes I finally got on a 43 bus but it was terminating at Highbury Corners (my stop is past that) but again figured get on & at least get going in the direction I want to go. A few stops later the bus makes a strange turn & I realise part of the problem is that the bus route road is closed for resurfacing (UGH!!) but no worries we're moving & hopefully it should be too much longer (famous last words). When the bus finally gets to Archway (diversion was very slow) I think okay lets get this show on the road, I'll pop off here & get on the tube . . . smart idea until I realise the northern line is closed for track replacement all weekend . . . back to the bus stop I go. This time I get a bus which is terminating at Angel, which is fine by me as that's where I want to go - I think "yeah I'll get there" after a VERY slow ride we finally arrive at the tube station at 13.47, the movie started at 13.30 :( For those of you not good with math that journey took me just over 2 hours, typically it takes 40 minutes. Since I've come all this way I figure I'll get my sandals and then start my trip back home. I won't recite the reverse trip, but it's just as bloody bad as the trip into town! Luckily for me, I had nothing else I had to do today so I just tried to remain calm & enjoy the bus ride (which is hard with people bitching & moaning, pushing & shoving all around you).

So back to the point of this story . . . what life has taught me is to take it one day at a time & not to sweat the small stuff, but then again the first half might just be me mum's 12 step program rubbing off on me, since I grew up with it all around me. We often joke that I've been to more meetings than the average person in AA and that I know most of the lingo fluently, just ask Jed in C'town, he hated it when he'd say, "oh I didn't have time or I'm too tired to go to a meeting" and I'd say with a smirk on my face, "you always had time & energy to go get drunk" . . . and amasingly he didn't have much of a reply to that aside from, "dammit, you're right Ra" and off to a meeting we'd go.

It's hard at times when I hear people in the program whining about this & that in their lives & how hard things are . . . it makes me almost pissed off at times because the reality is what they're going through is just as tough as what I'm going through. If you stop to think about it, getting drunk is never a solution to any of my problems, to be honest it just hinders the problem. I mean if I think oh I've had a bad day at work, I'm gonna go get pissed at the pub tonight to make myself feel better, the reality is the hangover I'm gonna have the following day did not solve the problem & now I've got a new problem of a hangover. I guess what I'm trying to say is I don't like it when people use alcoholism (or any other disorder) as an excuse in their life. I mean I could blame bad things in my life on my mom, "if she hadn't drank then . . . " but the reality is this is the hand I've been dealt & I've gotta make the best of it, one day at a time!!

Sorry I'm rambling now, I guess what I'm trying to say is "Be kinder than necessary because everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle." Who are you to say yours is worse?!??!!

P.S. 117 days left!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Labels: books, quotes, thoughts

posted by Sara @ 12:07 am 1 comments

remembering

There are many things to remember today in my mind. The bombings of 2 years ago, Rifkin's birth date, and of course since I'm obsessed with sevens and the date is 07/07/07 I think it must be a good day for me!! Not sure what I'm going to do today, but I'll let ya know later.

Labels: birthday, remembering, thoughts

posted by Sara @ 10:57 am 0 comments

finally a gun bill? part deux

In response to my "it's better than nothing" comment, Jen replied with:

but i don't think it is better than nothing. i think we need to be wary about asking the government to restrict our freedoms and discriminate against people who seek mental health treatment. we need to balance the cost with the potential benefits and i don't think the potential benefit warrants the cost if we are talking about a law lumping, for instance, all mentally ill people in the same affected group. i suppose i'd have to know the exact language of the law to say for sure whether i'd support it or not, but based on what i know i'm not inclined to support it. in general, i have no interest in gun control. i'm not at all sure that the constitution doesn't protect individuals' right to "bear arms," and i don't think the issue is worth the resources to fight it out, considering all of the other problems we have in theUS. also, only because you are a scientist, i will say that i think it is intellectually dishonest to list out school massacres as support for gun control. it's inflammatory rhetoric, appealing to emotion rather than reason. it plays on the dubious (in my view) cultural meme that children's lives are of the paramount importance in our society. is it really relevant how many school shootings there have been if overall in the US we had a very low rate of gun-related crimes? the truth is, the facts are on your side -- from what i understand, the US has a very high rate of gun-related crime in proportion to its population compared to other 1st world countries. those statistics (and i'm sure there are others) are actually relevant to supporting your point. yeah, i have a lot of opinions! obnoxious american!

To which I replied with:
my reason for putting up the school shootings is b/c that's what brought this gun bill to the floor of the house & senate in the first place (or according to the article I was reading). I will try to look into stats about gun related violence in 1st world countries, but I think it might be hard to compare stats for example b/w the US and UK since guns are illegal in the UK (not even our beat cops have them), but I will try to find some stats!

Anyone else want to chime in on this topic?!?!?!

Labels: politics, thoughts

posted by Sara @ 7:02 pm 3 comments

finally a gun bill?

Before I get started on today's topic of gun control, I wanted to put this link from Life is RANTastic up since it relates to my post from yesterday about Paris Hilton and is just so funny I think everyone should read it!

So back to today's point . . . in reading the BBC news this morning since I'm still waiting on the freakin reagents to arrive! I read how the US House has passed a gun control bill and now it's up to the senate to make it happen so to speak. This new bill would require states to have automatic reporting of mental health/criminal records into some sort of database which in turn would be double checked against potential gun buyers. That sounds like a good idea, right? I think another big plus for this bill is that it's being backed by the National Rifle Association (NRA) and we all know how powerful they are! I guess the only draw back to this bill is that all those who have guns now are exempt from this bill and I'm sure there are people out there who fall under this category who shouldn't have guns but already do. BUT then again, trying to track everyone down would be such a palaver!! Interestingly there has not been any gun control legislation passed in over 13 years and back then it was to ban some assault weapons. I'm 90% sure that it shouldn't have taken 13 years and so many deaths to get something like this passed, don't you agree? Let's think about all the school shootings in the US since 1994:

• Richland High School shooting - Lynnville, Tennessee, November 15, 1995


• Frontier Junior High shooting - Moses Lake, Washington, February 2. 1996


• Pearl High School shooting, Pearl, Mississippi, October 1, 1997


• Heath High School shooting, West Paducah, Kentucky, December 1, 1997


• Jonesboro massacre - Jonesboro, Arkansas, March 24, 1998


• Thurston High School shooting - Springfield, Oregon, May 21, 1998


• Columbine High School massacre - Littleton, Colorado, April 20, 1999


• Heritage High School shooting - Conyers, Georgia, May 20, 1999


• Santana High School - Santee, California, March 5, 2001


• Appalachian School of Law shooting - Grundy, Virginia, January 16, 2002


• Rocori High School shootings - Cold Spring, Minnesota, September 24, 2003


• Southwood Middle School tragedy, Miami, Florida; February 3, 2004


• Red Lake High School massacre - Red Lake, Minnesota, March 21, 2005


• Campbell County High School - Jacksboro, Tennessee: November 8, 200


• Platte Canyon High School shooting - Bailey, Colorado, September 27, 2006


• Amish school shooting - Nickel Mines, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, October 2, 2006


• Weston High School shooting, Cazenovia, Wisconsin September 29, 2006


• Springfield Township High School Shooting-Springfield, Pennsylvania, Dec. 12, 2006


• Henry Foss High School - Tacoma, Washington, January 3, 2007


• Virginia Tech massacre - Blacksburg, Virginia, April 16, 2007

In my mind it's taken a bit too long for such legislation to be enacted, but who the hell am I? Most in DC would probably just call me an ex-pat & write my opinions off.

Labels: politics, thoughts

posted by Sara @ 12:07 pm 4 comments

Things that make you really think

After spending most of my Saturday doing bugger all* I received an email from someone state side which had some not so good news. In order to protect the people involved, all you really need to know is that someone is in ICU after an accident & I think will be okay at the end of it, but I don't know any more details.

The part that makes me really think is how life can be so short. One of the persons related to the accident victim & I sort of lost touch around the time that I moved back to London in March. It's a long story, of which I'm not even really sure of the reasons, but now I some what feel guilty. What ever we went through & sort of "ended" our friendship, doesn't mean that I don't care for that person or their family. But at the same time I don't want to send a card & have them think I'm taking the piss, seeing as we haven't spoken since I moved here. I think this person would feel the same way, but then again based on what ended the friendship, I'm not really sure if they would send a card to me (well to be honest they wouldn't b/c they don't have my address). I sent an email the second I found out & hope they don't think that I'm crossing the line - if you know what I mean.

My debate, do I send a snail mail card or not?!?!?!?

Incidents like this just make me think a lot. This accident could have happened to someone in my family & what would I do then. I'm over 3,000 miles away & it would take me over a day to get there & once there I wouldn't be able to do much at all aside from sit beside them. Don't get me wrong if for example, my sis were in ICU, I would do everything in my power to get home asap & I would sit there & do whatever I could to help her - I did when she broke her thumb & James called to tell us she was having surgery.

* bugger all Saturday = waking up at 8 but not getting out of bed till half 9 - going down stairs to get some tea & finding Estee & Zarina sitting out having tea in the garden, so I joined them - we were there until about 4pm - taking a nap from 5-6 (in my bed) - chatting online with friends from 7-10pm - watching a movie before falling asleep.

N.B. Sunday was much more action packed ;) - showering, going to a market in Palmers Green, sitting in the garden while eating watermelon, cucumbers, tomatoes, with fresh toasted semolina bread, going to hear Estee's cousin's gig in Hornsey, buying meat at a kosher deli in Golders Green, having dinner, watching a movie, going to bed semi early b/c of work today.

Labels: thoughts

posted by Sara @ 12:20 pm 5 comments

snails & flossing

Bet that title got you wondering . . . NO not together, just two things I'm going to talk about today - I'm running out of catchy titles, sorry!

On my way out the door today what did almost step on . . . a freaking snail - I swear they are everywhere now that the weather is rainy all the time & I'm starting to worry they are after me. Nobody else in the house sees them all over the place like I do, wtf is up with this?!?!?!

Dental floss - a very important part of dental care, which I reckon is neglected a lot of the time. I say this because it always seems to be an item that never runs out at your local Boots shop. You're probably wondering why I say this, but if you think back to the last time you went into a Boots store & were looking for toothpaste, toothbrush, face cream etc, did you not notice how at least 1 of the items on the list was either not there or very low in supply? I did - they rarely seem to have my favourite toothpaste (even though the sticker is on the shelve) there is just an empty space where they use to be - I've learned when I see it to buy in bulk, probably throws the sales person off when they see me purchase 3 tubes of toothpaste & only 1 bottle of shampoo & 1 bottle of conditioner, but hey, gives them something to think about while mindlessly checking me out.

Okay back to my point, I don't think people use floss as much as they should . . . albeit, for a long time I was not a fan of flossing either, but ever since the discovery of Glide floss I rather enjoy it. I also reckon that since moving to a country which is not well known for it's dental hygiene I think I've become a bit more obsessed with my dental care. Touch wood, I've never actually had a cavity - I had a tooth that never fully grew in properly which they had to put a filling in, but aside from that my mouth is 100% pure. I'm sure it's in part to the mass amounts of money my parents paid while I was growing up - I don't want to think after all those dental visits, orthodontist appts & years of braces what my mouth is worth, but I won't be seriously playing any sports where a ball/puck could come flying up & knock them out anytime soon! I've heard too many horror stories about hockey pucks & front teeth - if you haven't & are intrigued ask Jim the next time you see him about his hockey days . . . ouch, makes my mouth hurt just thinking about it.

Here are some tips in case you were wondering if you were flossing correctly. So what are your thoughts on flossing, tooth brushing, or just dental hygiene, in general. Patty no need to reply - I/we all know you're OBSESSED with it ;)

Labels: thoughts

posted by Sara @ 11:22 am 2 comments

Madeleine, Lee, and School Uniforms?

All I have to say about this is - WTF where the parents thinking leaving their kids alone in a hotel room while they go out to dinner?!?!?! You can see from the map at the bottom of the article that the restaurant was not really close to the apt - I don't think that checking up on them every hour or half hour is a wise decision - it takes just a few minutes for a child to drown themselves in a few inches of water!

Have any of you read the book, Where Have All the Leaders Gone by Lee Iacocca with Catherine Whitney? I'm intrigued, I enjoyed reading the expert, in particular his 9C's of leadership & agree with em, but don't know if the book is something that I really would enjoy reading - ya know what I mean?

Okay, back to my original post idea, school uniforms . . .

In walking to catch the bus this morning a boy passed me dressed in his school uniform (which goes for all schools over here - not like in the US where it's primarily catholic or private schools) and I my mind immediately thought I think they're a good idea. I know this can be quite a controversial issue at least with schools in the US. Here are some of the reasons I think they're a good idea:

• A possible increase in school pride - wearing jeans & a t-shirt does nothing for school pride at all
• I reckon that a child in a school uniform is more likely to take school seriously - it's like how adults have to wear "business attire" to work & it also helps prep them for the real world where you can't necessarily wear jeans & trainers on a daily basis
• Lessens the likelihood of arguments over fashionable clothes & even just self esteem issues for those kids who can't afford the trendy new outfits.
• Uniforms are much more appropriate clothing than some of the fads that are overly revealing & can cause distractions in the classroom. I remember even back 10 years ago how students thought school was more of a fashion show.
• Uniforms make students follow directions, which in my mind is a good thing b/c recently I've noticed that kids don't seem to listen to anybody - which some might think is a con as far as "conformity"
• No worry about what to wear in the morning since there would be no making up their minds - added bonus for kids & parents
• For security issues, uniforms make it easy to identify kids who belong in the school and those that don't

Maybe the reason I think they are good is because I never had to wear one when I was growing up & now that I'm old, they look like a good idea . . . what are your thoughts?

Labels: thoughts

posted by Sara @ 11:45 am 2 comments

Jerry Falwell

I understand everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but this man was a nutter in my opinion. I do not mean to be disrespectful, as he just passed away, but after reading what evangelist Rev Jerry Falwell said according to the BBC article, "Shortly after the 11 September 2001 attacks, he said that gays, atheists, civil-rights activists and legal abortions in the US had angered God and 'helped this happen'" I have to voice my opinion that he's just an out right nutter & just plain old wrong for saying such a thing!

Most of you already know my opinion about gays so I won't start on a rant about that and as you will probably guess my mind is open to abortions & civil rights . . . okay I promise I'll try to stop here or I'm just gonna make myself really really pissed off over people who believe these sorts of things. I continue to try to remain open minded to others thoughts, but when they are so close minded I find it very hard.

Labels: thoughts

posted by Sara @ 8:03 pm 0 comments

Being American . . .

in a foreign country can be hard at times, I think I've mentioned this a few times, but it's not as easy as you might think. And yes, it is VERY different from being a tourist!! Yesterday, Jen wrote and touched on this subject, which is what inspired me to write today about this. Well that & the fact that I haven't written a good blog yet this week & I'm sure some of you are a bit bored reading about my work.

I guess what spurred my reaction was that Jen said something about showing that America is not George Bush, which is soooooo true!! At lunch yesterday I was sitting with 3 girls from my lab (K who is Canadian, A&T = English) & another girl (C = English) who doesn't actually work here anymore but is finishing up a few experiments this week.

I'm not sure how we got on the topic, but suddenly we were talking about flights & security. Some what out of the blue C said, "flying through America sucks thanks to your president". Trying to understand what she meant I had to inquire what exactly she meant by this statement. "everyone gets finger printed & full body cavity checks"
"No C, not everyone gets finger printed & I think you might be wrong about the full body cavity checks".
"No I'm right, when my parents flew in last time, they had their bags searched & then zip tie locked up, followed by the cavity check. Plus I don't think this system is good because the workers could plant drugs in your bag & then call ahead to the next airport to have you arrested"
Trying to remain calm & not just deck her (which was my first thought) I said, "Now C think about it, if they found the drugs in your bag at JFK they would arrest you there, they wouldn't wait until you landed in Orlando to arrest you, so if you got arrested there for drugs it would be obvious they were planted"
"Well that maybe the case for Americans, but not for us, they are always trying to get us arrested" - C said
I tried to just drop the subject, we were obviously not going to see eye to eye on this one at all! But then a few minutes later, she had to start up again on a different issue, but still the same anti-American topic. This time it was about how all American think that America is the best place in the world & that we dislike other countries & that's why not many Americans have passports. I'm not exactly sure how she was going to prove any of this, but seeing the writing on the wall I avoided saying anything. K who is Canadian, but being North American she felt the need to stick up for me, she said, "Have you ever been to America? For that matter, have you ever been out of the UK?"
"No, but I know my parents told me, when they were there"
To which K just smiled & said, "how about we only talk about what we know first hand"
I was very thankful for K's tactful way of shutting her up because I was getting really frustrated with all the America bashing.
I think everyone should be proud of where they came from & we should all be proud that we are all very different. I'm not going to try to tell you that America is the best place on the face of the earth & that we single handedly are going to be able to solve the world's problems, but I think it America is a great place & I'm very proud to be from there.
That all being said because I have run into a few people who are like C in their views of America/Americans, at times I joke that I'd almost prefer to say I'm Canadian, but not because I'm embarrassed about being American, but just to avoid a pointless argument, in which neither of us are going to be able to convince the other we are right.
I do think it is sad that more Americans don't get out of the US & visit other places to see what the rest of the world has to offer, but it's a personal decision & I can't force anyone to travel! I can however tell you that international travel (flights) can be much cheaper at times than flights within the US, but then you have to contend with the Euro, the Pound, or whatever the local currency is, & the exchange rate at the moment isn't the greatest at least for Europe.
I guess the only last thing I want to say on this topic is that you should always be proud of where you came from (whether it's America, England, Bangladesh, or New Zealand) but remember to be respectful of the country you are in, ie if the national anthem comes on, you don't have to sing it at the top of your lungs, but you should stand & be respectful - that's my thoughts & advice for the day.
What are your thoughts on this?
Suppose I should get back to my real work now, but before I go, check out our weekend weather and doesn't the last photo on this page look kinda like my dad (I know it's my cousin, but I suddenly saw a family resemblace!)

Labels: thoughts

posted by Sara @ 10:15 am 6 comments

pay day

So I've already been paid for my first week of work :) I have to go & pick up the pay check in a few minutes but I'm ruddy excited since this is the first time I will actually be getting paid in nearly 2 years - I'm sure my family (and friends) are very happy because I won't be asking to borrow money or saying, "no I can't afford to do that" (as often). Course Jim laughed when he saw my pay slip while I was dancing around the room in excitement of getting paid, I didn't care about the amount - lol!!! I also pointed out that his paycheck is much higher than mine due primarily to the overtime he puts in, I don't get overtime, while he gets TONS of it, mainly by choice, so he can't complain at all, but does cause we all know boys are whiners ;)

My mum sent me cute photos from last week when my sis went to visit her, if I get my act together I will try to save a few to this computer & then upload them on here for you.

I wish I had some more interesting stuff to tell you about, but I guess my work life is pretty boring - going to make some single cell suspensions later this afternoon, but I won't bore you with the details of that!

I did hear on the news this morning that 2 covers (one child & one adult) for the next Harry Potter book has been released, not being a big HP fan I'm not going searching for it to show you, but apparently they are out there for you to view, should you be so inclined.

hmmm, what else to tell you . . . it's raining here in London today & of course my brellie (what some people like to call umbrellas) broke on my walk from Kings Cross to LSHTM, luckily it was only a light rain so I didn't get soaked or anything horrible like that, but still it frustrated me!

Well I'm off to pick up my paycheck & meet with Nigel, the safety officer and if I'm really lucky be able to get my official ID card, how long does it take to get all this stuff done you ask? Well it's been nearly 3 weeks now, gotta love the relaxed attitude which some places take!

Update as of 10.30, I know what I want to tell you, how annoyed I get when people go to shake your hand & drop their eyes/head to look at the floor, while extending their hand only for you to accept it, expect to shake it, just get that "wet noodle" feeling! That really drives me bonkers, if you're going to go through the trouble of making an effort to shake my hand the least you can do is look at me & shake my hand, none of this fany-pany hand crap!

Update as of 11.28, I now have my own personal ID card - which works cause I tested it before I go & return my visitor one. I now have in hand my blue safety paper, which I just have to figure out what the ADCP & DEFRA codes for the pathogen I will be using are (not even sure what those stand for). AND more importantly, I have deposited my pay check & my deposit check which I did FINALLY get back from the lovely Leo (landlord of my KT flat last year). I think the next thing on my agenda for the day is to read and in the afternoon maybe make a few single cell suspensions with Anna.

I also wanted to let you know they have some good prices on flights from the US to the UK, should any of you fancy visiting me here in Londontown. Of course in my new house I won't be able to put you up, as I only have my bed & doubt you want to share it with me, but I have also found the Muswell Hill Hotel which is just 5 minutes (via bus) away from my house & has reasonable rates (remember I live in a city not Saranac Lake!)

TOPICS you want info on in future posts. Please feel free to leave comments with other topic ideas, I will get to all of them eventually (aka slowly, but surely)

• food
• people I work with
• flatmates
• spot where Dr. John Snow shut down the public water pump to put a stop to the cholera epidemic until I get there in person you can check out this site about it.

13.21 update: Jim & I were talking the other night & I inquired why he was called a "bobbie" to which he sort of sputtered off some answer that he recalled hearing during training about the tickets that they use to give out where some how called a related term, but then he admitted he really did not know that answer. On Tuesday night however when he arrived home from work he said, "we're called bobbies because of our founder" to which I asked how the heck he found that out & he said he read it on the side of a building in Holburn while turning in some official paperwork. Here is more of the story for you all to read. Did you also know that many years ago today (1869 to be exact) Edwin Lutyens was born, he was an architect known as the last English designer of country houses and that on 30 March 1945 Eric Clapton, songwriter and guitarist was born?!?!?!?

16.08 update: So there are a lot of people using the tube these days and that is about the only interesting thing I can tell you right now, still waiting to hear back from the care hiring company and will be leaving here in just over an hour - yeah :)

Labels: daily mission, thoughts

posted by Sara @ 10:11 am 1 comments

1st day of work at LSHTM

Before you read, remember that my spell check option does not work so please understand I have quickly proofread it but I don't promise anything!!

So after arriving over a week ago I was somewhat worried about my decision to move back to London. It is totally different than the last time I was here. - the group of friends who I hung out with 95% of the time are not here anymore, not to say I don't know anyone, but it just makes it a bit weird at times. Living on someone's living room couch is not the easiest either. I'm totally thankful that I have a place to crash, but it's not as comfortable when your bed is also the couch & dinning room chair. Don't get me wrong the boys have been great about me staying & are respectful when I get tired & want to sleep. It's just all a bit strange, guess I was spoiled having my own bedroom & run of a house during the day for all those months in Connecticut!! (Thanks Anne & John, I miss you guys!!) Of course as of Friday morning it will probably get slightly easier as Rob leave to go to Thailand for 4 weeks & as most of you know he is the harder one of the two to get along with - as was evident last night when I got a phone call from the states & he decided to talk to me while I was obviously speaking on the phone, sometimes he can be such arse!!!

After such a wonderful first day yesterday I'm not as worried about it. I know my living situation will sort itself out very soon & I'll get into the swing of work. I'm sure in a few weeks time I will totally have forgotten about my indecision about moving here, it is just this interim time I have to try to remain calm & see the light at the end of the tunnel, for example my FREE trip to Thailand in November & the free croissant breakfast every Tuesday at 4th floor lab meetings - I mean in the long run, what more could I ask for???

Well I'm off to look for flats online & see what I can see. I still have not heard back from either prospective flatmate, so maybe I'll just go out on my own. And as Pete mentioned in a comment yesterday, I have to start figuring out when I can take the animal course at the vet hospital to start the process of getting my license. Amasingly enough you can snap a neck without any license (which if done wrong could be very painful) but anything else you need one, go figure . . . Okay back to start my second day at work. If you're bored & want to read something interesting today, check this out.

Labels: thoughts

posted by Sara @ 10:35 am 1 comments

thoughts & book meme

Once again I am amazed when I open my yahoo account to find emails from supposed friends which just blow me away. Maybe it is easier to rude to a friend when you know they are moving over 3000 miles away? Well I refuse to rehash the details, all it has helped me to do is weed out the fair weather friends. So I guess in a way I should be grateful to those of you who have emailed & proven where our friendship lies, in the long run it makes my departure on Saturday just that much easier, so let me take this time to thank each & every one of you.

As for my plans for tomorrow & Saturday . . . hmm . . . good question. Tonight I know is Asian Chicken Salad with Anne, John & Matt. Tomorrow I HAVE to go to Patty's and get my suitcase sorted (had originally planned to do that today, "Never do today what you can put off till tomorrow. Delay may give clearer light as to what is best to be done." -- Aaron Burr) Tomorrow night is up in the air (dependent on if Melissa comes to CT for the weekend) as is Saturday, but I do have tentative plans no matter what occurs.

Okay, on a happier note, my friend Zee's site, Behind Blue Eyes, posted this book meme & since I have bugger all to do today (yeah right) I decide it was a good procrastination tactic. What I've learned from doing this is that I'm not well read according to this list, but then again I'm not sure that Harry Potter is really a classic.

Instructions:
in bold=have read the book.
in italics=want to read the book
* =own the book
[]=notes from me
1. *The Da Vinci Code (Dan Brown) [loved it]
2. Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)
3. *To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee) [a favourite from hs]
4. Gone With The Wind (Margaret Mitchell) [started but never finished]
5. The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (Tolkien)
6. The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring (Tolkien)
7. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (Tolkien)
8. *Anne of Green Gables (L.M. Montgomery) [I read ALL the books in this series]
9. Outlander (Diana Gabaldon)
10. A Fine Balance (Rohinton Mistry)
11. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Rowling)
12. *Angels and Demons (Dan Brown) [a disappointment after reading DaVinci Code]
13. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Rowling)
14. *A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving)
15. *Memoirs of a Geisha (Arthur Golden) [really good, given to me by my previous boss while recouping from knee surgery!]
16. Harry Potter and the Sorcerors’s Stone (Rowling)
17. Fall on Your Knees (Ann-Marie MacDonald)
18. The Stand (Stephen King)
19. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Rowling)
20. Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte)
21. The Hobbit (Tolkien)
22. *The Catcher in the Rye (J.D. Salinger) [required reading for hs, but really enjoyed it as well]
23. Little Women (Louisa May Alcott)
24. The Lovely Bones (Alice Sebold)
25. *Life of Pi (Yann Martel)
26. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams)
27. Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte)
28. The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe (C. S. Lewis) [will never forget this book, Mrs. Smith read it to us in 3rd grade as we sat in a circle giving each other back massages]
29. East of Eden (John Steinbeck)
30. *Tuesdays with Morrie (Mitch Albom) [highly recommended!!!!!!!]
31. Dune (Frank Herbert)
32. The Notebook (Nicholas Sparks) [saw the movie & it was really good so I'm guessing I should try to pick it up]
33. Atlas Shrugged (Ayn Rand)
34. 1984 (Orwell) [was required reading in hs but never finished it]
35. The Mists of Avalon (Marion Zimmer Bradley)
36. The Pillars of the Earth (Ken Follett)
37. The Power of One (Bryce Courtenay)
38. *I Know This Much is True (Wally Lamb)
39. *The Red Tent (Anita Diamant)
40. The Alchemist (Paulo Coelho)
41. The Clan of the Cave Bear (Jean M. Auel)
42. The Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini)
43. Confessions of a Shopaholic (Sophie Kinsella)
44. *The Five People You Meet In Heaven (Mitch Albom) [not nearly as good as Tuesday's with Morrie]
45. *Bible
46. Anna Karenina (Tolstoy)
47. The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas)
48. *Angela’s Ashes (Frank McCourt)
49. The Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck)
50. She’s Come Undone (Wally Lamb) [Started, never finished]
51. The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver)
52. A Tale of Two Cities (Dickens)
53. Ender’s Game (Orson Scott Card)
54. Great Expectations (Dickens)
55. The Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald) [hs reading list, not a big fan]
56. The Stone Angel (Margaret Laurence)
57. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Rowling)
58. The Thorn Birds (Colleen McCullough)
59. The Handmaid’s Tale (Margaret Atwood)
60. The Time Traveller’s Wife (Audrew Niffenegger)
61. Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoyevsky)
62. The Fountainhead (Ayn Rand) [Started; couldn't get through it]
63. War and Peace (Tolstoy)
64. Interview With The Vampire (Anne Rice)
65. Fifth Business (Robertson Davies)
66. One Hundred Years Of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)
67. The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants (Ann Brashares)
68. Catch-22 (Joseph Heller)
69. Les Miserables (Hugo) [Started, liked it, but never finished it, saw the musical 10 times in NYC while growing up]
70. *The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupery) [read in French & English, top that!]
71. *Bridget Jones’ Diary (Fielding)
72. Love in the Time of Cholera (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)
73. Shogun (James Clavell)
74. The English Patient (Michael Ondaatje) [didn't like the movie, so doubt I will try reading it]
75. The Secret Garden (Frances Hodgson Burnett)
76. The Summer Tree (Guy Gavriel Kay)
77. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Betty Smith) [ms reading I think]
78. The World According To Garp (John Irving)
79. The Diviners (Margaret Laurence)
81. Not Wanted On The Voyage (Timothy Findley)
82. Of Mice And Men (Steinbeck)
83. Rebecca (Daphne DuMaurier)
84. Wizard’s First Rule (Terry Goodkind)
85. Emma (Jane Austen)
86. Watership Down (Richard Adams)
87. Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)
88. The Stone Diaries (Carol Shields)
89. Blindness (Jose Saramago)
90. Kane and Abel (Archer)
91. In The Skin Of A Lion (Ondaatje)
92. Lord of the Flies (Golding)
93. The Good Earth (Pearl S. Buck)
94. The Secret Life of Bees (Sue Monk Kidd)
95. The Bourne Identity (Robert Ludlum)
96. The Outsiders (S.E. Hinton)
97. White Oleander (Janet Fitch)
98. A Woman of Substance (Barbara Taylor Bradford)
99. The Celestine Prophecy (James Redfield)
100. Ulysses (James Joyce)

Labels: books, thoughts

posted by Sara @ 9:05 pm 1 comments